House passes $70 billion immigration enforcement bill
The House on Tuesday passed a $70 billion immigration enforcement bill, funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection for the rest of President Donald Trump's term.
The package passed in a 214 to 212 vote.
It now goes to Trump's desk for his signature.
The bill's passage ends a monthslong fight on Capitol Hill over immigration enforcement funding.
After two American citizens were fatally shot by federal agents during Trump's immigration crackdown in Minneapolis earlier this year, Democrats said they would not provide funding for ICE and CPB without significant reforms to their operating procedures.
The opposition led to a record-long partial government shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. After 76 days, Congress approved a package to fund most of DHS except for the immigration enforcement agencies.
Republicans then pushed funding for ICE and CBP forward using reconciliation, a legislative process that allows them to pass legislation without any Democratic support.
Speaker Mike Johnson applauded the passage in a statement Tuesday afternoon, blasting Democrats for opposing the bill.
"With today’s vote, House and Senate Republicans have officially ended the third Democrat government shutdown of this Congress. And here’s the end result of Democrats’ record-setting obstruction: CBP and ICE will now be funded for the remainder of President Trump’s term and Democrats will have no ability to defund these agencies in the 119th or 120th Congresses," Johnson said in the statement.
The Senate last week passed the immigration enforcement bill in a 52-47 vote. All Senate Democrats voted against the bill.
